Jays join Ed. Dept. honors society

On Sunday Feb. 17 a ceremony took place to induct new members into the Education Department’s Honor Society. The society is called Kappa Delta Pi International Honor Society, and Elizabethtown College is in the Tao Iota Chapter. The students who were inducted include: Melissa Gettys, Brittany Hansberry, Erin Hatch, Laura Killion, Alyssa Koplin, Rebecca Kremer, Emily Lehman, Lindsay Palm, Madison Pipkin, Amanda Pluta, Laura Randazzo, Rebecca Richardson, Rebecca Sayler, Carley Shrader, Rachael Smith, Ryan Stadel, Traci Tempone, Alexandra Topa and Allison Waskow.
These students were selected for induction based on the requirements made by Kappa Delta Phi (KDP). According to Dr. Rachel Finley-Bowman, Education Chair, the students needed to have at least 60 college credits, formal acceptance into the Education Program, approval of the department based upon professional integrity and devotion to service (the pillars of KDP) and a 3.5 cumulative GPA or higher. Once a student meets these requirements, they are invited to join the honor society.

These 19 students accepted their invitation and are the newest members of the honors program here at Etown. The induction ceremony took place in the Susquehanna Room at 1:00 p.m. Family and friends were invited to celebrate with the inductees. They celebrated the inductees, achievements and recognition. Dr. Rachel Finley Bowman opened the ceremony by recognizing the achievements of the inductees and congratulating them on behalf of all departmental faculty members. Following Dr. Bowman was assistant professor of education Dr. Shannon Haley-Mize, who provided the keynote address. Dr. Haley-Mize’s speech, entitled “Be is a Verb,” was about “advocacy and dedication to the profession, encouraging new KDP members to utilize this opportunity to become agents in their future discipline,” according to Dr. Bowman. Each student was recognized individually and as part of the group.
The event was organized by KDP officers: President Casey Grouser, Treasurer Pamela Jaraczewski, Executive Committee Member Janelle Felegi, and Executive Committee Member Emily Bancroft. “Myself and fellow officers were honored to induct our new members and share in the celebration of their accomplishments! We congratulate them and are pleased to have them in the society,” Grouser said.
As new KDP members, these students are required to complete service hours which include civic engagement, service learning and teaching projects. The KDP mission from their official website is “to sustain an honored community of diverse educators by promoting excellence and advancing scholarship, leadership, and service.” The KDP vision is “to help committed educators be leaders in improving education for global citizenship.” Grouser gave praise to the organizing officers of the event, as well as Dr. Bowman and other faculty in the education department saying, “We cannot thank our department for their support and opportunities they have given us to achieve these goals and grown professionally in the field of education.”

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